THREE five-star hotels are now being constructed in Longgang District, ending the district's lack of five-star hotels, according to a source at the Longgang District Government on Wednesday (September 7th).

Two five-star hotels will start business around the Spring Festival next year and another one is to open in late 2006.

Apart from the five-star hotels, two four-star hotels are also being built.

According to Ye, an officer with the district government, the five-star hotels are all funded and operated by local companies. "The local businessmen have realized that high-quality hotels are very important to the economic development and also can earn them big fortune," Ye said.

There had been six spots set aside for four- and five-star hotels already and Ye believed that at least six more four-star or above-star hotels would be built in the district within three years.

The Olympic New Town (ONT) is planned to cover 13.4 square kilometers with the Olympic Park, housing a main stadium, a gym and a swimming center.

The planned hotels, including those under construction, are dotted in the ring of Buji, Longgang and Pingshan townships, the most prosperous areas among the 11 townships in Longgang District.

Longgang's district government plans to have at least 11 four- or above-level hotels. That is, every township, which has reserved lands for hotels, will have at least one hotel.

So far, Longgang has 108 hotels, of which only three are three-star hotels and two are four-star hotels. There is no five-star hotel in Longgang, while Bao'an, also a district outside the special economic zone, has three times more hotels than Longgang District, including one five-star and four four-star hotels.

The necessity of Longgang to built high-quality hotels is urgent. According to statistics announced by the Longgang government last year, the district is losing 3 billion yuan (US$370 million) in hotel revenues every year due to the shortage of hotels.